Suppose we, as pilots do everything right - and are complying with all the right regulations for our country - but "out of the blue" - an aircraft suddenly appears in "our airspace" on what appears to be a collision course? What is the best evasive maneuver to take? Descend immediately? Straight down? Match the course of the other aircraft and fly that direction while descending? Fly away at 90 degrees while descending? Hover and do nothing hoping the other pilot sees you and takes action to avoid you? The fastest way you can get out of the way is to execute a CSC shutdown and kill your motors sacrificing your drone for the greater good and possibly causing damage or injury on the ground (but what if you're over an empty field or a lake)?
It's impossible for us to tell how high the other aircraft is from our vantage point on the ground - or if it is ascending, descending or flying level.
An idiotic reply to this question would be "Don't be there in the first place." or "I would have heard him coming long before it became an issue". You didn't. Or maybe it's a glider. Avoiding the scenario is not what this thread is about. If you're sure you could avoid ever being in a situation like that - then please move along and avoid this message thread!
Another dumb response would be "the airplane is not allowed to be flying there". Ok. Point taken. He shouldn't be there. BUT HE IS! My question is not about preventing this hypothetical situation from ever occurring - and it's not about assigning blame or determining which pilot is in the wrong. I reserve the right to call you a ******* if your reply contains any variation of those 2 answers or if it starts with "That situation could never happen to me because:.." (Unless you fly exclusively indoors or below 100ft - it *could* happen to you.)
The question is: What you would do? - or What should a UAV pilot do? - if they find themselves in this situation.
(I think it will be it interesting to hear all the different answers/ideas that will come back to this question)
I know some of you will have trouble even considering a scenario that you think is not possible. So let me give you a plausible way this could happen. The other plane is a small Cessna and it may have just taken off from a small nearby lake. It may be about to land on a small nearby lake. Or it may be piloted by or under contract by someone who wants to fly over their own neighbourhood real low to take some pics.
So again - as the drone pilot in this scenario - you don't know if he's landing, climbing or just flying around. You don't know his altitude - but you can tell that he's lower than he should be. Understand that the pilot of the other plane may not be following all of the rules and regulations he's supposed to be following regarding air space and altitude - drone pilots don't have exclusivity on breaking the rules.
So - what would you do? What advice would you give to another pilot in that situation?
(For bonus points, also comment on what you would do differently if anything, if the air traffic was not a plane. It was a: )
- another UAV
- a helicopter
- a glider or hang glider
- a parachutist
- a guy that made a mistake hooking up his gas barbecue
It's impossible for us to tell how high the other aircraft is from our vantage point on the ground - or if it is ascending, descending or flying level.
An idiotic reply to this question would be "Don't be there in the first place." or "I would have heard him coming long before it became an issue". You didn't. Or maybe it's a glider. Avoiding the scenario is not what this thread is about. If you're sure you could avoid ever being in a situation like that - then please move along and avoid this message thread!
Another dumb response would be "the airplane is not allowed to be flying there". Ok. Point taken. He shouldn't be there. BUT HE IS! My question is not about preventing this hypothetical situation from ever occurring - and it's not about assigning blame or determining which pilot is in the wrong. I reserve the right to call you a ******* if your reply contains any variation of those 2 answers or if it starts with "That situation could never happen to me because:.." (Unless you fly exclusively indoors or below 100ft - it *could* happen to you.)
The question is: What you would do? - or What should a UAV pilot do? - if they find themselves in this situation.
(I think it will be it interesting to hear all the different answers/ideas that will come back to this question)
I know some of you will have trouble even considering a scenario that you think is not possible. So let me give you a plausible way this could happen. The other plane is a small Cessna and it may have just taken off from a small nearby lake. It may be about to land on a small nearby lake. Or it may be piloted by or under contract by someone who wants to fly over their own neighbourhood real low to take some pics.
So again - as the drone pilot in this scenario - you don't know if he's landing, climbing or just flying around. You don't know his altitude - but you can tell that he's lower than he should be. Understand that the pilot of the other plane may not be following all of the rules and regulations he's supposed to be following regarding air space and altitude - drone pilots don't have exclusivity on breaking the rules.
So - what would you do? What advice would you give to another pilot in that situation?
(For bonus points, also comment on what you would do differently if anything, if the air traffic was not a plane. It was a: )
- another UAV
- a helicopter
- a glider or hang glider
- a parachutist
- a guy that made a mistake hooking up his gas barbecue